Melt-in-Your-Mouth Meatballs & Gravy

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Meatballs and gravy:  the quintessential comfort food.  My very first memories of this dish include my family (naturally), specifically my father; he was always the cook of the house, and my mom the baker.  My dad makes the creamiest, smoothest mashed potatoes I’ve ever had, and the moistest meatballs, with thick, homemade gravy.  I’d request this dish often, and I never got tired of it.  When I moved out on my own after high school, my dad would still cook up a big batch when he made it, so he’d be able to bring me a little care package of leftovers (in fact he still does, on occasion); I could eat those meatballs for days and be happy.

Somehow, I had never bothered to learn from him how to recreate the dish, so when I tried to make it for the first time a couple of years ago, it wasn’t pretty.  My first solo meatball performance consisted of several phone calls to my dad, asking him questions and making sure I was doing everything the right way.  The meatballs ended up a little overcooked and pretty dry, and the mashed potatoes were lumpy and runny; I used canned gravy – thank goodness – I don’t even want to think about what I could have done trying to make it from scratch.

The second attempt was markedly better, although still lacking; I used half pork, half hamburger for the base of the meatballs, instead of just beef (in order to make the meatballs more moist), and I made homemade gravy instead of using the canned version.  I must not have adjusted the baking time enough to the new recipe, because this time I undercooked the meatballs, and they ended up too moist; the texture left a lot to be desired.  It was an improvement, although I’m not sure how much of an improvement it was.  Then there is the issue of the gravy (yes, it was definitely an issue):  it seemed fine at first, but then it started to coagulate, and it became blubbery and not very appetizing at all; needless to say, I didn’t save the leftovers.

Since these first couple of trial runs, I’ve managed to find a good balance, and I’ve found a real winning recipe here, folks.  The meatballs are still half pork and half hamburger, because it really does work best for keeping them moist; I’ve been able to adjust the baking time so that they turn out fully cooked, though!  I’ve found the secret to making delicious homemade gravy is to use both water and half & half, instead of one or the other; the combination keeps the gravy thick, but viscous enough where it’s not coagulating (like my first attempt above), and it tastes rich but not overpowering.  I’d recommend making this with mashed potatoes, and serve everything covered in gravy, yum!

Ingredients:

4 ounces French bread, crust removed

1 ½ cups milk (any type, I used 1% because that’s what was in my fridge)

1 lb ground beef

1 lb ground pork

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1 yellow onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 tsp ground oregano

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp pepper

2 tbsp butter

14 ounces beef broth

Breadcrumbs, for coating

Olive oil, for frying (enough to come up to the halfway point of the meatball)

2 tbsp cornstarch

1 cup water

Half & half (about half a pint)

What to do:

For the meatballs:

For the gravy:

Serve over meatballs, and mashed potatoes (if you have ‘em).  Enjoy!

Finished product:

Turkish cuisine features more than 80 types of meatballs, most being regionally made. In addition, Turkish-style meatballs are made throughout Middle Eastern cooking, often with a localized form of the Turkish name attached.

 

 

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